Gender Identity, Gender Roles, and Sex Differences

GENDER IDENTITY, GENDER ROLES, AND SEX DIFFERENCES

Chapter 6

Learning Objectives• Prenatal Sexual Differentiation• Gender Identity• Gender Roles and Stereotypes• Gender Differences• Gender Typing• Psychological Androgony

Prenatal Sexual DifferentiationSexual Differentiation The process by which males and females

develop distinct reproductive anatomy

Sperm fertilizes ovum resulting in zygote

Each parent contributes 23 chromosomes

23rd pair determine sex

Females contribute X

Males contribute X or Y• XX = Female• XY = Male

Prenatal Sexual DifferentiationEmbryo The stage of prenatal development that begins with

implantation of a fertilized ovum in the uterus and concludes with development of the major organ systems at about two months after fertilization

After seven weeks of prenatal development, the genetic code (XX or XY) results in changes in the gonads, genital ducts, and external genitalia.

Ovaries begin to develop at 11 or 12 weeks.

Prenatal Sexual DifferentiationGenetic Factors in Sexual Differentiation

Genetic influences do exist

SRY (sex-determining region on Y gene)

Leads to the formation of the testes

Prenatal Sexual DifferentiationThe Role of Sex Hormones

Androgens Male sex hormones

Without androgens all infants would develop female external reproductive organs

Presence results in the development of male external reproductive organs at about 8 weeks

Small amounts found in female fetuses

Absence in female fetuses prompts development of female sexual organs

Female sex hormones are crucial in puberty, not for sex differentiation

Prenatal Sexual DifferentiationDescent of the Testes and Ovaries

Testes and ovaries develop from structures in the abdominal cavity

The ovaries complete their descent after the prenatal period

Testes descend via inguinal canal

CryptorchidismThe condition defined by testes that fail to descend

Sex Chromosomal AbnormalitiesKlinefelter syndrome Caused by an extra X

chromosome (XXY) in a male

Fail to develop appropriate secondary sex characteristics

May be mildly retarded

Turner syndrome Caused by only one X

chromosome (XO) in a female

At risk for medical complications

Spatial and math difficulties

Infertility

Prenatal Sexual Differentiation

Development of the internal sex organs from an undifferentiated stage at about five or six weeks after conception

Critical Thinking

Critical thinkers do not oversimplify or

overgeneralize. Consider this statement: In the absence of prenatal male sex hormones,

we would all develop as females.

Would we all develop as fertile females?

In what way would we all develop as females?

Gender Identity

Gender Identity

• Psychological awareness or sense of being male or female

Sex Assignment

• Reflects anatomic sex at birth

Children• First aware of anatomical sex by 18 months• Firmly acquire sense of gender identity at 36 months

Gender Identity

Nature and

Nurture

• Gender identity is almost always consistent with one’s chromosomal sex• Does not certify that gender

identity is biologically determined• People are usually reared as

males or females in accordance with their sexual anatomy.

Gender Identity

Hermaphrodite• A person who possesses both ovarian and

testicular tissue• Is extremely rare

Intersexual• A person who possesses gonads of one sex

but external genitalia that are ambiguous or typical of the other sex

The experiences of intersexual individuals have helped uncover the relative importance of nature and nurture.

Gender Identity

Intersexualism

• True hermaphroditism is rare• Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is

most common form of female intersexualism• Genetic female has female internal

sexual structures but masculinized external genitals

• Due to exposure to excess levels of androgens

• Girls with CAH exhibit more interest in masculine-typed behaviors

• Results may support a hormonal contribution to gender identity

Gender Identity

Intersexualism

• Androgen-insensitivity syndrome• Genetic male is prenatally insensitive to

androgens such that his genitals are not normally masculinized

• Genetic female with partial or complete insensitivity develops typical external organs, but internal organs don’t develop or function normally

Gender Identity

Intersexualism

• Dominican Republic syndrome• A genetic enzyme disorder prevents

testosterone from masculinizing the external genitalia

• Raised as females• At puberty, testosterone levels become

normal• Voices deepened, musculature filled

out, “clitorises” expanded into penises• Most shift to male gender identity

Gender Identity

Research suggests that

gender identity is

influenced by complex

interaction of biological

and psychosocial

factors

• Dominican Republic boys suggest importance of biology to gender

• Studies of girls with partial or complete androgen insensitivity suggest that two X sex chromosomes are not essential to develop feminine-typed behavior

Gender Identity

Transgenderism

• Individual strongly desires to be of the other sex and live as the other sex

• Many undergo hormone treatments and surgery so body matches sense of self

The term transsexualism was used previously

Gender Identity

Sex Reassignmen

t

• Health professionals conduct evaluations• Hormone treatments• Live openly as member of the other sex

for extended period of time• Surgery• Most postoperative reports are positive

Gender Roles and Stereotypes

Stereotype

• A fixed, conventional idea about a group of people

• Often a distorted generalization

Gender roles

• Complex clusters of expectations for how males and females should behave

Critical Thinking

Why would a researcher bother to study whether traditional gender-role stereotypes are found

around the world?

Gender Roles and Stereotypes

Sexism

• The prejudgment that because of her or his sex, a person will possess certain negative traits

• Psychologically damaging • Can influence career choice• Education can change traditional

sexist attitudes

Gender Roles and Stereotypes

Gender Roles and Sexual Behavior

• Men as initiators, women as gatekeepers• Men make the choices regarding sexual

positions and techniques• Men as overaroused, women as

underaroused• Men more interested in sex than women

Gender DifferencesDifferences

in Cognitive Abilities

No overall differences in intellectual functioning

Some gender differences appear for certain cognitive abilities

Females better at verbal tasks

Males better at visual/spatial tasks

These are in group differences

Variability is larger within the sexes than between the sexes

Differences may largely reflect environmental influences and cultural expectations

No difference in math abilities despite stereotype

Gender DifferencesDifferences in Personality

Females are more extraverted, anxious, trusting, and nurturing

Males are more assertive, tough-minded, and have higher self-esteem

Differences tend to be small

Relative lower self-esteem for girls

Parents prefer boys

Unlevelled playing field in society

Sex DifferencesDifferences in Social Behavior

Communication Styles Males dominate discussions

Females express their feelings more than males do

Sexuality Men show more interest in sex

Women combine sex with romance

Aggressiveness Males engage in more overt aggression compared to females

Willingness to seek health care

Men let symptoms go

Women live an average of seven years longer than men do

Gender Typing

The process by which children acquire behavior that is

deemed appropriate to their sex

Gender Typing

• Hormones• Most studies find no relationships• One study showed fetal testosterone level

linked to sex-typed behavior in infants

Biological Perspectives

Gender Typing

• Evolutionary perspective• Genes that contribute to survival are passed

on• Genetic heritage influences social and

sexual behavior• Traditional roles are passed on through

genes• Controversial perspective

Biological Perspectives

Critical Thinkin

g

Why do you think many feminists and

queer theorists argue that

evolutionary theory is little more than a

sophisticated excuse for

maintaining the status quo in the

centers of power in society?

Gender Typing

• Prenatal brain organization• May explain men’s overall superiority at

visual/spatial tasks and women’s overall superiority at verbal tasks

• Prenatal sex hormones may create a greater or reduced tendency to act physically aggressive

Biological Perspectives

Gender Typing

• Psychoanalytic Theory• Gender typing occurs through identification

with the same-sex parent • A resolution to the Oedipus complex (or

Electra complex in girls)

Psychological Perspectives

Gender Typing

• Social-cognitive theory• Gender typing occurs through the

processes of observational learning, identification, and socialization

• Guiding people into socially acceptable behavior patterns by using information, rewards, and punishments

Psychological Perspectives

Gender Typing

• Cognitive-developmental theory• Gender typing occurs through cognitive development

• Schema• A concept or way of interpreting experience or

processing information• Gender stability

• Concept that people retain their genders for a lifetime

• Gender constancy• Concept that people’s genders do not change,

even if they alter their dress or behavior

Psychological Perspectives

Gender Typing

• Gender schema theory• Gender schema

• Cluster of mental representations about male and female physical qualities, behaviors, and personality traits• Once learned, children evaluate themselves in

terms that are appropriate to their sex • Higher self-esteem is associated with self-

concepts that are congruent with the prominent gender schema of one’s culture

• A gender schema can lead to gender-appropriate behaviors and affects mental processes, e.g., memory

Psychological Perspectives

Psychological Androgyny

A state characterized

by possession

of both stereotypical

masculine traits and

stereotypical feminine

traits

• May be more able to summon wide range of traits to act on the demands of the situation

• Associated with psychological well-being and higher self-esteem

Critical Thinking

Explain why feminists have criticized the concept of

psychological androgyny.